Perfect Piecing: Meriellen Joga
Intro
- I’m not the quilt police
- I’m the 1st to say “NO RULES”
- I have a good friend who is “less than precise”
o Chops of points, corners don’t match
o Makes beautiful quilts
o And HAS FUN doing it (isn’t that the whole point?)
So why worry?
- Entering judged shows
- To please yourself – especially if you’re like me
- Most important – to reduce the frustration factor
o 12 ½” squares that are anywhere from 12 ¼” to 12 ¾”
o Squares that aren’t square
o Flying geese that fly south
Why does this happen?
- Errors add up
o take a 16 patch square
o cut pieces 1/32” too small → 4 * 1/32 or 1/8” small overall
o seam allowances are off by 1/64” → 4 * 1/64 * 2 or 1/8” off overall
- It’s all about geometry!!!
So what can we do? (other than paper piece)
- Consistency
o If you make the same errors on every square, every square will be the same size
- Patience (with the quilt & with yourself)
- Take a break to refresh
Use good tools
- sharp needles
- straight stitch plate
- ¼” presser foot
- sharp rotary cutters (and hard surfaces)
- rulers in good shape
- quality thread
- clean iron
- replace your mat when it gets furry
Fabric preparation
- prewashing is a personal preference
- starch your fabrics (but not until you’re ready to use them)
o it helps the fabric hold it’s shape
Cutting
- good height for your cutting table is at your hip socket
- tuck in your elbow
- lines on the rulers have thickness – be consistent when you’re lining things up
o use the same brand of rulers throughout a project
- press straight down on the ruler
- non-slip grips should be thin
- square from the fold – use a wide ruler or the lines on your mat
- don’t cut any more than 4 thicknesses of fabric
- don’t move the fabric, move the cutting board
- make sub-units larger than they need to be, then cut down after they’re sewn
o i.e. half square triangles, hourglass units, flying geese
Pinning
- matching points
o one pin straight through both points (or point & seam), then use another to pin in place
- match corners where seams meet
o seams to one side
o seams open
§ note: use smaller stitch length (14 stitches per inch (2.0)) for open seams
Sewing
- pin, pin, pin (wherever you want pieces to match)
- tight tops, baggy bottoms
- sew a straight seam “end to end”
o take your time, sew slow
- check your ¼” (every machine is aligned differently)
o press patches open and measure the total width
o can compensate for imprecise cutting
- remove pins before you stitch over them – they distort the seam
- chain piece (use a scrap to get started)
- use a stiletto (taylor’s awl) to guide fabric, especially points
- when matching points, sew with the point up and sew through the point
Ironing
- press as you go
- be gentle--press, don’t iron
- set the stitches first
- iron with the grain
- check that the seam is pressed all the way open
- iron to reduce bulk – consider ironing seams open
- steam can correct a multitude of sins
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